Let's not lose focus as the Human Resources Developement Canada debate rages on in Parliament - and even outside, where the Minister has twice been called "a liar" by Opposition MPs, speaking without the protection of parliamentary immunity. A better tack was taken by the Conservatives, who turned over to the RCMP what they say is evidence of wrongdoing. But there's a serious danger that we'll lose sight of the real issue.

That real issue is not Don Boudria's binder; it is not when Jane Stewart first knew of the accounting problems; it is not whether the amount involved is $3 billion (the total amount spent) or only $251.50 (which Boudria claims - without documentation - is all that was lost); it is not whether some of the grants went to worthwhile organizations and programs. It is not even why Jean Chrétien wants Jane Stewart to take the fall for Pierre Pettigrew.

No, the heart of the issue is this: the Federal Government takes money from us in taxes; it then creates programs which it mis-uses to buy votes for the party in power - using our money.

Why does the Canadian public allow it to go on? Sadly, the reason is that many of us - maybe the majority - have been bought.

This has been the strategy of our Federal Governments for a long time. It was the strategy under Prime Minister Pearson; under Trudeau; under Mulroney, and now under Chrétien. Clark, Turner and Campbell weren't in long enough to employ it. The strategy is to get so many people dependent on the Government that they will support it, even if they oppose many of its policies.

Most Canadians do not agree with Bill C-23, which would give same-sex couples the kind of special recognition that should be reserved for normal married families. Most Canadians do not agree with the Federal Government's pro-abortion policies. Most Canadians do not agree with the Federal Government's sell-out of Canadian sovereignty in NAFTA, MAI, WTO and other globalist strategies. Most Canadians, although they agree with respecting other cultures, do not agree with the Federal policy of sponsoring multi-culturalism with Federal tax dollars.

But in spite of all these differences, most Canadians have allowed themselves to become financially dependent on the government. You can see it as they eagerly anticipate what they will do with their "tax refunds". This is a shell-game in which the government takes more money than it should, then plays the generous grandfather handing out "gifts" every June.

What's the answer? To remember that our Constitution says that the God of the Bible is above all those things which have ensnared us. And to begin to let that knowledge direct all of our actions - as consumers, as citizens, as individuals.

CHRISTIAN HERITAGE PARTY of CANADA
Heritage Place 155 Queen Street, Suite 200
Ottawa, ON  K1P 6L1
Ph. (613)788-3716  Fax  (819)457-9242
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